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I didn't come across this thread already...So here it is.
Seems like every Bonnaroo email update sent is advertising a new sponsor. I guess this is the territory that comes with signing big names...I just find it irritating that we are so bombarded with products when we're just trying to have fun. (For instance: the FUSE barn, Garnier Salon, Gillette, X-Box, MLB, etc.) There's definitely enough stimulus already, don't you think? I've gotta get off this corporate trip before Roo or I'm gonna flip...Deep breaths But I think this is the last straw- no Roo next year unless this year really blows me away.
Look at it this way. The corporate sponsors are actually subsidizing our tickets. If not for them each of us would have to pay more. I also believe Bonnaroo does better than most festivals in that their five largest venues are not sponsored by these corporations. Bonnaroo does not have the Pepsi stage or the Trojan Tent.
Post by tentseasurfer on May 30, 2008 21:20:54 GMT -5
If you educate yourself on the tricks of marketing you become immune. I love Bonnaroo because it is 80,000 people letting loose, getting creative, and listening to some amazing music. Gillete can be there...Garnier Fructis can be there, Current TV is there and I stopped watching that channel 2 years ago because I found out one of the "viewer created" podcasts was actually produced by Verichip Corporation in an attempt to get people thinking getting microchipped is the new cool trend. I do understand your frustration, but corporate shillery is such a small small aspect of what Bonnaroo is all about.When you educate yourself on the methodology used to entice you you see right through it. My point is you cannot escape corporate infiltration...it will seep in and try to glean every last demographic dollar it can. Only you can let yourself be influenced by it. I can tell you this...Garnier Fructis will be the last thing on my mind while I'm rocking out with Gogol Bordello and 80,000 of my closest friends
Post by starfire55 on May 30, 2008 21:23:51 GMT -5
I remember paying the same for the last couple of years. I got the early tix though - much cheaper and all! Yeah - I won't be worrying about getting a hair wash that's for sure. Last year a couple of pallys that went with us missed WEEN because they were like number 200 something to get their hair washed!?!??? WHAT? I was appalled!
Post by hibouxdufromage on May 31, 2008 11:24:47 GMT -5
Yes, prices creep up a little every year. More corporate sponsors are added every year. More bands are added every year. More fun stuff to do is added every year. More money is given to charities every year. Steps taken to make Bonnaroo a permanent fixture of American culture are added every year. Unfortunately, more people bitch every year. Get over it!
Post by itrainmonkeys on May 31, 2008 11:31:44 GMT -5
Honestly I don't mind the e-mails. I just ignore the "advertising" I think "Oh cool.....they are giving us a place to shave this year. I may do that but probably not" and keep going on my way. My friends (see the thread "Negativity about Roo") have complained about the "corporateness" of Roo and all the sponsors and stuff like that. They seem to think the sponsors bring about crappy, extremely mainstream bands, which I find hard to believe considering we have over 30+ New Orleans musicians, the finest djs, hip hop artists, acoustic acts, heavy rock acts, and everything else.
It doesn't bother me much. I feel like the money I pay for tix are reasonable considering i'll see at least 30 concerts of great artists.
Also.......the things you mentioned bombarding you (Xbox, MLB, Garnier, etc) aren't just random advertising. They aren't just billboards there when you're walking. They are all services provided by these sponsors to make sure you have a good time. Xbox helps the arcade, MLB funds the batting cages, Garnier offers showers and free samples, Gillette offers a chance to shave, Fuse is giving a place to relax and charge your phone in air conditioning while also streaming live performances of some artists. It's not like we have to read pamphlets when we enter Roo.......we just notice the sponsor when enjoying what they bring to Roo.
When I start to notice a difference when I'm actually down there.........it may start to annoy me. But once i'm in centeroo there's no difference from the first year I went in the atmospheric vibe. Very good stuff.
Roo giving a shout out to a sponsor who is bringing some specific tent is one thing; Lollapalooza actually naming their stages and tents after their sponsors is another.
Roo does a very credible job of keeping sponsorships corralled into secondary, value-added positions as opposed to wallpapered experience-interferers.
Post by strumntheguitar on May 31, 2008 12:38:02 GMT -5
I never once noticed a sponsor last year at the Roo. I was not looking for them, and I did not care. Until they rename the stages to match sponsors and they have announcers before the band come up and say "We all need to thank Coca Cola for making this all happen! Be sure to stop by the drink stand and buy an ice cold refreshing coke before this next act!" I really couldn't care less.
Besides... the Fuse deal is sweet! If only I had that channel...
im going with skew on this one - you guys every been to lollapalooza? talk about advertising.
aside from the stages, here is another example: bud sponsors roo. bud sponors lollapalooza. at roo, there are many tasty brews to enjoy. at lollapalooza, there is bud, bud light, and bud select - and nothing else.
It's been like that the past couple years. Doesn't bother me. Especially since Bonnaroo requires their sponsors to provide some sort of activity. I think it's cool having a shave shop, a salon, batting cages, etc.
i keep on hearing people say that these sponsors make ticket prices lower, but i could of sworn I payed more for my tickets each year.
Ticket prices increase every year? Have you looked at how much a barrel of oil costs these days, from which plastics, gasoline, and other synthetic materials are derived? Or a kilowatt of electricity? How about a loaf of bread or a bushel of corn? Look at the avg price of housing from 2002 to 2008.
A Bonnaroo ticket has stayed well below the rise in cost of these essential goods and if I'm not mistaken it has expanded the musical acts & other activities at the festival quite substantially in that time as well. A Bonnaroo ticket is a good value. Without corporate sponsorship, Bonnaroo would be much more expensive to festival goers.
In most cases advertisers subsidize many things like radio, tv, newspapers, & magazines, most websites including this one, sporting events, and concerts. If you don't like it then about the best you can do is pull a Kaczynski and go live in a shack in the woods. Let me know how the roasted squirrel with a side of twigs & berries tastes.
^ Well I guess it just doesn't bother me very much, it is not really in my face. Since they are not allowed to market directly to us they have to do something cool to get our attention. Garnier got to be a sponsor by providing showers and shampoo conditioner, and throwing down some bucks. IT is not like they just press a package of herbal essence on you, on the way in and expect you to fill out a survey.
I remember this topic from last year and, as far as my friends and I are concerned, we really appreciated that free shampoo we got. As ding dongs go we forgot to bring our own. And how about that free VW t-shirt you got in Daytona during spring break? I still have mine from 1992. Just more free stuff imo.
Post by kaleidoscope kristen on Jun 3, 2008 10:26:46 GMT -5
Sponsors at Roo don't bother me because I do enjoy a lot of the services they provide.
I know some friends who saw Bonnaroo has "sold out", but when it comes down to it, they're trying to make profits just like everyone else while providing a fun atmosphere.
These sponsors are crucial for their margins, and like machub said.. I enjoyed the free shampoo and other nice samples.
Post by stallion pt. 2 on Jun 3, 2008 10:52:26 GMT -5
Leela: Didn't you have ads in the 21st century?"
Fry: Well sure, but not in our Bonnaroo. Only on TV and radio, and in magazines, and movies, and at ball games... and on buses and milk cartons and t-shirts, and bananas and written on the sky. But not in Bonnaroo, no siree.
John: We don't even understand our own music Spider: It doesn't, does it matter whether we understand it? At least it'll give us . . . strength John: I know but maybe we could get into it more if we understood it
I love the people who discuss selling out.. I mean do they think that festivalas are made out of the kindness of the collective staff's hearts.. I mean it keeps the train moving for years to come. and with the increase of cost to set up (you think your gas is bad in your car. Think about the gas cost of the earthmovers/cranes etc). I mean advertisers and buisness is what keeps this little slice of earth called america moving. No commerce = no taxation = no maintianed roads, power structure, etc. I mean even this board is advertised upon. Advetising fuels the life blood of america. As the saying goes, Love it or leave it
sponsors really dont bother me at all. I barely noticed and got some cool samples
Ditto. Looking like the Coleman rain ponchos I picked up for free last year might get some use this year! And I remember "trying" more than one refreshing yogurt smoothie when it was hot out, too. It made a nice change from the water I'd been chugging all day. The sponsors are mainly together, away from the main drag. Easily avoidable if you want to. Me? I like free stuff.
Eh, it doesn't bother me. I don't really notice the sponsors, and if it takes sponsors to support Roo, that's fine with me. At least the stages aren't "The Bud Light Stage" or "Verizon Presents: Bonnaroo" or something like that. When it gets to that point, I'll give up.
Think of this way, too. At Bonnaroo, you get free water. At Ultrafest, all you could buy was that expensive Glaceau water, at $5 a bottle.
But I think this is the last straw- no Roo next year unless this year really blows me away.
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